Two-Passage Questions
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Text 1
Personal carbon footprint calculators can motivate meaningful change because they translate an abstract crisis into daily decisions. When people see that frequent flying dwarfs the impact of recycling, they may shift travel habits and support cleaner options. The calculators are not perfect, but they give individuals a starting point and a sense of agency. Waiting for governments alone invites paralysis; widespread personal tracking can build a culture that demands broader reform.
Text 2
Footprint calculators often redirect attention away from the actors with the most leverage. Energy systems, freight networks, and building codes shape emissions far more than whether a person buys paper towels. When companies promote calculators, they can imply that climate failure is mainly a consumer’s moral lapse, not a policy and infrastructure problem. Individual choices matter, but the most effective “agency” is collective: voting, organizing, and pushing institutions to decarbonize at scale.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to Text 1’s suggestion that widespread personal tracking can build a culture that demands broader reform?
They would argue that calculators can distract from systemic solutions and shift responsibility onto consumers, making reform less likely rather than more.
They would agree that personal tracking is more effective than policy change because infrastructure responds quickly to consumer guilt.
They would claim that individual choices never affect emissions under any circumstances.
They would argue that footprint calculators are accurate enough to replace national emissions inventories.
Explanation
Text 1 suggests that widespread use of personal carbon footprint calculators can build a culture that demands broader reform by giving individuals agency and a starting point for change. Text 2 would likely respond critically, arguing that footprint calculators 'often redirect attention away from the actors with the most leverage' - energy systems, freight networks, and building codes. Text 2 warns that when companies promote calculators, they can shift blame to consumers rather than addressing policy and infrastructure problems. The author argues the most effective agency is collective action through voting and organizing, not individual tracking. Choice A correctly captures this response: calculators can distract from systemic solutions and shift responsibility onto consumers, making reform less likely rather than more. Choice B is wrong because Text 2 doesn't agree personal tracking is more effective. Choices C and D misrepresent Text 2's nuanced position.
Text 1
Many cities now promote remote work as a climate policy, assuming fewer commuters automatically means lower emissions. Yet the arithmetic is not so kind. When workers stay home, they often heat or cool larger spaces for longer hours, and many take extra car trips that would have been combined with the commute. In several household energy surveys, weekday electricity use rose enough to offset much of the fuel saved on driving. Treating remote work as a primary emissions strategy is therefore misguided.
Text 2
Remote work should not be dismissed because some households use more electricity. A commute is not merely a personal choice; it is a system that requires roads, parking, and peak-hour transit capacity built to handle daily surges. When remote work reduces those surges, cities can delay highway expansion and repurpose parking lots, changes that cut emissions for decades. Even if home energy use rises, the long-term savings from avoiding new infrastructure can outweigh short-term household increases.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to the conclusion in Text 1 that treating remote work as a primary emissions strategy is misguided?
They would agree, arguing that remote work should be promoted only for economic reasons rather than environmental ones.
They would qualify it by arguing that household electricity use never increases when people work from home.
They would reject it, claiming that commuting has no meaningful effect on emissions compared with home energy use.
They would challenge it, emphasizing that remote work can reduce emissions by enabling cities to avoid building and maintaining commute-related infrastructure.
Explanation
Text 1 concludes that treating remote work as a primary emissions strategy is misguided because household energy use often rises enough to offset commuting fuel savings. Text 2 directly challenges this conclusion by introducing a systems-level perspective: commuting requires infrastructure (roads, parking, transit capacity) that must be built and maintained. The author argues that when remote work reduces commuting surges, cities can avoid building new highways and repurpose parking lots, creating emissions reductions that last for decades. This long-term infrastructure savings can outweigh short-term household energy increases. Answer B correctly captures this challenge by emphasizing infrastructure avoidance. Answer A is incorrect because Text 2 doesn't agree with Text 1's conclusion. Answer C misrepresents Text 2, which acknowledges that household electricity use can increase. Answer D incorrectly claims Text 2 rejects the importance of commuting emissions entirely.
Text 1
Public libraries should stop trying to be “quiet museums of books” and instead become full-service community hubs. Many patrons come for job applications, language classes, or a safe place after school, not just novels. When libraries add makerspaces and host local organizations, they expand their relevance and can better justify public funding. A library that refuses to evolve risks becoming a nostalgic symbol rather than a working institution.
Text 2
Turning every library into a bustling hub can unintentionally weaken the very service that makes libraries distinctive: sustained access to knowledge. Study rooms fill with events, collections shrink to make space for equipment, and staff time shifts from research help to crowd management. Communities certainly need gathering places, but they also need sanctuaries for reading and concentration, especially for people whose homes are noisy. Modernization should not mean abandoning quiet; it should mean protecting it with equal seriousness.
Which claim from Text 2 most directly addresses the idea in Text 1 that libraries should become full-service community hubs to remain relevant?
A push toward constant events can reduce space and staff attention for research and quiet study, undermining a core library function.
Many patrons visit libraries primarily to borrow novels rather than to use computers or attend classes.
Libraries should charge admission for events so that they can maintain larger book collections.
Libraries can justify funding only by adding makerspaces and hosting local organizations.
Explanation
Text 1 advocates for libraries becoming full-service community hubs with makerspaces and events to remain relevant. Text 2 directly addresses this by warning that 'Turning every library into a bustling hub can unintentionally weaken the very service that makes libraries distinctive: sustained access to knowledge.' The author explains that study rooms fill with events, collections shrink for equipment, and staff time shifts from research help to crowd management. Text 2 argues that communities need 'sanctuaries for reading and concentration' and that modernization should protect quiet spaces. Choice B correctly identifies this claim: a push toward constant events can reduce space and staff attention for research and quiet study, undermining a core library function. Choice A misrepresents Text 2's position. Choice C mentions patron preferences but doesn't address the hub concept. Choice D introduces charging admission, which Text 2 doesn't mention.
Text 1
People often praise “grit” as the key to academic success, but grit is frequently a label applied after the fact. When students have stable housing, quiet study space, and reliable transportation, persistence looks like a personal trait. When those supports are missing, the same level of effort yields fewer visible results and is interpreted as lack of grit. Studies that correlate grit scores with grades rarely measure these constraints directly. Treating grit as the main lever for achievement risks blaming students for structural barriers.
Text 2
Structural barriers are real, yet dismissing grit as merely a retrospective label ignores evidence from interventions that teach perseverance strategies. Programs that coach students to set specific goals, anticipate setbacks, and practice deliberate routines have improved course completion even when financial stress remains. These effects are not enormous, but they are consistent across schools. The most sensible approach is not to choose between grit and resources; it is to provide supports while also teaching skills that help students use those supports effectively.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to Text 1’s concern that emphasizing grit risks blaming students for structural barriers?
They would claim that grit scores are accurate because they directly measure housing stability and transportation access.
They would agree that grit has no measurable impact and should be removed from educational research entirely.
They would argue that structural barriers do not affect academic outcomes as long as students work hard enough.
They would concede the risk but contend that teaching perseverance strategies can still yield benefits alongside material supports.
Explanation
Text 1 warns that emphasizing grit risks blaming students for structural barriers like unstable housing or lack of study space. Text 2 concedes this risk exists but contends that teaching perseverance strategies (goal-setting, anticipating setbacks, practicing routines) has shown consistent benefits in improving course completion, even when financial stress remains. The author advocates for both providing material supports AND teaching skills to use those supports effectively. Answer C correctly captures this nuanced response: acknowledging the risk while maintaining that perseverance strategies have value alongside structural supports. Answer A is wrong because Text 2 doesn't agree grit has no impact. Answer B contradicts Text 2's acknowledgment of structural barriers. Answer D misrepresents how grit scores work.
Text 1
Translation apps are making foreign-language study obsolete. Travelers can point a phone at a menu, employees can auto-translate emails, and speech tools are beginning to interpret conversations in real time. Given limited school budgets, time spent conjugating verbs could be redirected to coding or statistics—skills with clearer labor-market returns. Cultural understanding can be taught through literature in translation, and communication barriers will continue to fall as software improves.
Text 2
Convenient translation is not the same as communication. Apps often flatten tone, miss idioms, and fail in noisy settings or when speakers use dialects. More importantly, language learning builds a person’s ability to negotiate meaning, notice cultural cues, and earn trust—capacities that matter in diplomacy, health care, and community work. Even in business, relying on automated translation can introduce subtle errors with legal consequences. Technology can support learning, but it cannot replace the human competence that learning creates.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to Text 1’s claim that foreign-language study is becoming “obsolete”?
Disagree, arguing that language study cultivates interpersonal and cultural skills and reduces high-stakes misunderstandings that apps can cause.
Disagree, but only because coding and statistics are less useful than verb conjugation in the labor market.
Agree, because translation apps already handle dialects and tone better than most human learners.
Partly agree, arguing that literature in translation provides all the same benefits as speaking a language.
Explanation
The question asks how Text 2's author would respond to Text 1's claim that foreign-language study is becoming 'obsolete' due to translation apps. Text 1 argues apps make language learning unnecessary. Text 2 strongly disagrees, arguing that 'Convenient translation is not the same as communication.' Text 2 explains that apps 'often flatten tone, miss idioms, and fail in noisy settings or when speakers use dialects.' More importantly, Text 2 argues language learning builds crucial interpersonal and cultural skills: 'ability to negotiate meaning, notice cultural cues, and earn trust—capacities that matter in diplomacy, health care, and community work.' Text 2 also warns about 'subtle errors with legal consequences' in business contexts. Answer B correctly captures this disagreement: Text 2 would disagree, arguing that language study cultivates interpersonal and cultural skills and reduces high-stakes misunderstandings that apps can cause. Choice A is wrong - Text 2 argues apps have significant limitations. Choice C misrepresents Text 2's position. Choice D introduces an irrelevant comparison not in Text 2.
Text 1
Some cities respond to housing shortages by loosening zoning rules, allowing duplexes and small apartment buildings in areas once reserved for single-family homes. Critics predict that such changes will “destroy neighborhood character,” yet the character they defend is often a recent invention, produced by mid-twentieth-century policies that excluded renters and lower-income families. Where modest upzoning has occurred, the result is typically subtle: a corner lot becomes a fourplex, a garage becomes a small unit. If cities want affordability without sprawl, gentle density is the most realistic path.
Text 2
“Gentle density” sounds politically soothing, but it can also be a convenient slogan that avoids harder choices. In many high-demand cities, adding a few units per block will not meaningfully reduce rents, especially when new construction targets higher-income buyers. Meanwhile, upzoning can accelerate land speculation, raising property taxes and pressuring long-time residents to sell. Affordability requires not only allowing more homes but also investing in subsidized housing and tenant protections, so that new supply does not arrive hand in hand with displacement.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to Text 1’s suggestion that gentle density is “the most realistic path” to affordability?
They would disagree, arguing that housing shortages are best solved by expanding highways so people can live farther away.
They would dismiss it, arguing that neighborhood character is fixed and should never change for any reason.
They would complicate it, arguing that modest upzoning alone may be insufficient and could contribute to displacement without additional policies.
They would agree, arguing that small-scale upzoning reliably lowers rents regardless of what kinds of units are built.
Explanation
Text 1 suggests 'gentle density' via modest upzoning is 'the most realistic path' to affordability without sprawl, downplaying character concerns and highlighting subtle changes. Text 2 complicates this by calling it a 'convenient slogan' that may not 'meaningfully reduce rents' in high-demand areas, especially if targeting higher-income buyers, and noting it can cause 'displacement' through speculation without 'subsidized housing and tenant protections.' This is a qualification and extension, agreeing on more homes but adding insufficiency and risks. Choice C correctly captures this by noting modest upzoning alone may be insufficient and contribute to displacement without policies. Choice A misreads Text 2 to assume agreement on rent-lowering reliability, ignoring its caveats. Choice B uses unsupported inference that Text 2 promotes highways, when it focuses on housing policies. Choice D flips positions, attributing to Text 2 dismissal of change when it advocates enhanced upzoning.
Text 1
In the rush to electrify transportation, some critics worry that electric vehicles merely shift pollution from tailpipes to power plants. Yet even on a coal-heavy grid, electric motors convert energy to motion more efficiently than gasoline engines, meaning fewer total emissions per mile in most regions. As grids add wind and solar, the advantage grows automatically without drivers changing behavior. The practical implication is that policies should prioritize rapid EV adoption now, because cleaner electricity will arrive over time and improve every electric mile already driven.
Text 2
Efficiency alone does not settle the environmental case for electric vehicles, because the largest impacts can occur before the first mile is driven. Battery production requires intensive mining and processing, and those activities often concentrate pollution near vulnerable communities. Moreover, rapid adoption can encourage larger vehicles with bigger batteries, increasing material demand. A wiser policy would pair electrification with smaller cars, longer vehicle lifespans, and strong recycling standards, so that the grid’s gradual cleaning is not offset by a surge in extraction and waste.
How does Text 2 relate to the argument presented in Text 1?
It extends Text 1 by arguing that EVs should be adopted immediately because battery production has negligible environmental costs.
It challenges Text 1 by shifting attention from driving emissions to manufacturing and material impacts that could undermine the benefits of rapid adoption.
It agrees with Text 1’s focus on grid emissions but argues that coal plants are cleaner than gasoline engines in every region.
It contradicts Text 1 by claiming that electric motors are less efficient than gasoline engines.
Explanation
Text 1 argues for rapid EV adoption because electric motors are more efficient than gasoline even on coal grids, with benefits growing as grids clean, focusing on driving emissions and policy prioritization. Text 2 challenges this by shifting to 'largest impacts...before the first mile,' like battery mining pollution and larger vehicles increasing demand, advocating pairing with smaller cars and recycling to avoid offsetting grid improvements. This is a contradiction and extension, undermining rapid adoption's benefits by introducing manufacturing impacts. Choice B correctly describes this by noting the challenge via focus on manufacturing that could undermine rapid adoption. Choice A flips positions, attributing to Text 2 negligible battery costs when it highlights them as significant. Choice C misreads Text 1's claim, as Text 2 does not agree on grid emissions but shifts away from them. Choice D uses unsupported inference that Text 2 claims electric motors are less efficient, when it actually critiques pre-driving impacts.
Text 1
Streaming services claim their recommendation algorithms help users discover diverse content, but the design of “personalization” often narrows exposure. Because the system optimizes for watch time, it learns to deliver familiar genres that keep a viewer from leaving. A user who watches one crime documentary can quickly receive an endless row of similar titles, while foreign films and independent releases are pushed out of sight. Recommendation engines may feel expansive, yet they can quietly reduce cultural variety.
Text 2
Watch-time optimization can narrow choices, but it does not follow that algorithms inevitably shrink cultural variety. Some platforms now incorporate “serendipity” metrics, deliberately inserting unfamiliar titles and measuring whether viewers sample them. When users do, the system can widen rather than narrow its suggestions. The real issue is the business goal the algorithm serves: maximize short-term engagement or cultivate long-term satisfaction. Algorithms are tools, and their effects depend on the incentives set by the platform.
Based on Text 2, which idea most directly addresses Text 1’s concern that recommendation engines can reduce cultural variety?
Algorithms should be eliminated because viewers are incapable of choosing content without automated guidance.
Cultural variety is best protected by limiting the number of titles any platform is allowed to host.
Platforms can design recommendation systems to promote exploration by incorporating measures that reward serendipity rather than only watch time.
Foreign films and independent releases are unpopular, so reducing their visibility has little effect on viewers’ experiences.
Explanation
Text 1's concern is that recommendation algorithms reduce cultural variety by optimizing for watch time and pushing users toward familiar content. Text 2 directly addresses this by explaining that some platforms now incorporate 'serendipity' metrics, deliberately inserting unfamiliar titles and measuring engagement. This shows algorithms can widen rather than narrow choices when designed with different incentives (long-term satisfaction vs. short-term engagement). Answer B correctly identifies this solution: designing systems that reward serendipity rather than only watch time. Answer A goes too far in suggesting elimination of algorithms. Answer C proposes limiting content, which doesn't address the recommendation issue. Answer D contradicts the premise that cultural variety matters.
Text 1
Many people assume that open-plan offices encourage collaboration, yet the architecture often produces the opposite. When desks lack walls, workers become acutely aware of being overheard and reduce spontaneous conversation. A study tracking employee communication before and after an office redesign found that face-to-face interactions dropped while email and messaging increased. The lesson is straightforward: if a company wants genuine collaboration, it should provide more private spaces, not fewer, so employees can choose when to talk and when to focus.
Text 2
It is tempting to blame open layouts for every workplace frustration, but communication patterns depend on norms as much as furniture. The same study that recorded fewer in-person conversations also showed that teams completed more cross-department projects after the redesign, suggesting that digital channels can broaden collaboration rather than shrink it. Privacy matters, yet walls can also trap people in familiar circles. Companies should treat space as one tool among many—paired with meeting practices and incentives—rather than assuming that privacy alone will produce better teamwork.
Which statement best describes how the viewpoint in Text 2 differs from that in Text 1?
Text 2 agrees that open plans reduce face-to-face talk but suggests this does not necessarily reduce collaboration and that solutions extend beyond adding private spaces.
Text 2 argues that open-plan offices reduce distractions, whereas Text 1 argues that open-plan offices increase them.
Text 2 claims that architecture is irrelevant to collaboration, while Text 1 claims that architecture is the only factor that matters.
Text 2 rejects the study cited in Text 1 as unreliable and proposes that only long‑term surveys can measure collaboration.
Explanation
The viewpoint in Text 1 argues that open-plan offices reduce collaboration by decreasing face-to-face interactions, as evidenced by a study showing drops in in-person talk and increases in digital communication, recommending more private spaces for genuine collaboration. Text 2 differs by qualifying this, agreeing that the study showed 'fewer in-person conversations' but extending it to suggest digital channels 'can broaden collaboration' (e.g., more cross-department projects) and proposing solutions beyond privacy, like 'meeting practices and incentives,' treating space as 'one tool among many.' This represents a qualification and extension, acknowledging the issue but adding nuance on digital benefits and broader factors. Choice B correctly represents this by noting agreement on reduced face-to-face talk but differing on collaboration impacts and solutions. Choice A flips authors' positions, attributing reduced distractions to Text 2 when Text 1 focuses on increased distractions. Choice C misreads Text 2's claim, as it accepts the study but interprets results differently, not rejecting it as unreliable. Choice D uses unsupported inference that Text 2 deems architecture irrelevant, when it actually integrates space with other tools.
Text 1
In hiring, “culture fit” interviews are defended as a way to build cohesive teams, but the concept often disguises bias. When interviewers reward candidates who share their hobbies, speech patterns, or educational background, they confuse comfort with competence. Companies then hire people who resemble current employees and wonder why innovation stalls. A better approach is to evaluate “culture add”: whether a candidate brings perspectives the team lacks. Cohesion should come from shared goals, not shared tastes.
Text 2
Bias can hide inside culture fit, but abandoning the idea entirely creates its own risk. Teams do need members who can handle disagreement productively and follow norms that protect collaboration, such as giving credit and meeting deadlines. Those behaviors are cultural, even if they are not about hobbies or personality. The solution is to define culture in observable practices and assess them with structured questions, not to replace one vague slogan with another. “Culture add” is useful only when the existing culture is clearly articulated and healthy.
Based on Text 2, how would the author of Text 2 most likely respond to Text 1’s proposal to replace “culture fit” with “culture add”?
They would oppose it, arguing that teams should ignore collaboration norms and focus only on technical skills.
They would support it unconditionally, arguing that any difference automatically improves innovation.
They would qualify it, arguing that assessing contribution is valuable but only if a company first defines culture as specific, healthy workplace practices and evaluates them consistently.
They would interpret it as a call to hire based on shared hobbies, which they argue strengthens cohesion.
Explanation
Text 1 proposes replacing 'culture fit' (which can disguise bias) with 'culture add' (bringing new perspectives). Text 2 qualifies this proposal by arguing that some cultural assessment is necessary - teams need members who can handle disagreement productively and follow collaboration norms. The key insight is that 'culture add' is only useful when the existing culture is 'clearly articulated and healthy.' This means first defining culture as specific workplace practices and evaluating them consistently. Answer C correctly captures this qualified support. Answer A is wrong because Text 2 values collaboration norms. Answer B oversimplifies by suggesting unconditional support. Answer D misinterprets the proposal as being about shared hobbies.